


Communication

by lionwolves



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, Established Relationship, F/M, Forgiveness, Thoschei
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-16
Updated: 2020-01-16
Packaged: 2021-02-22 12:57:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22283230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lionwolves/pseuds/lionwolves
Summary: The Doctor and the Master resolve to work on their relationship and move on together, but that is easier said than done for the Doctor.
Relationships: The Doctor/The Master (Doctor Who), Thirteenth Doctor/The Master (Dhawan)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 88





	Communication

“Get out!” The Doctor screams. 

The Master frowns, shocked by the ferocity of her tone, but still not the least bit intimidated by it. “What?”

They had been attempting to work on their relationship, expressing their feelings to each other instead of letting them build into resentment as they had previously. The Doctor insisted that they needed it to heal and move on together.

He had said something, only one thing, which the Doctor can’t even remember now in the midst of her blind fury, that brought all of her feelings back to the surface at once.

She feels burning anger towards him for Gallifrey, for everything he’s done that she thought she had moved on from, that she had learned to forget and forgive just as Missy had learned to do better, but it felt like they had moved ten steps back since then. 

“I said get out, if you know what’s good for you,” the Doctor says. 

Based on her tone and expression, the Master knows this isn’t the time to try to challenge her as he normally would. 

He relents, putting his hands up in surrender before he exits her TARDIS and closes the door behind him. She had landed on an arid planet, but she isn’t sure where he will go and she tries very hard not to care. 

The Doctor leans over and grips the console for support as she feels anxiety build within her. 

This isn’t healthy, she knows. Especially when she was the one who extended the olive branch to him and suggested this course of action so that they could find a way to move on, _together._ It isn’t fair to him, even considering all he has done, to promise to forgive him as she always does, only to treat him this way. 

But she realizes that she can’t deal with it any better than he can. 

The Doctor closes her eyes, taking one, long deep breath after another, trying to calm herself fully before she sets off to find him. 

As soon as she exits her TARDIS, she discovers that she landed on a steep hill of the planet, and she finds him sitting down with his legs hanging off the edge. 

She is rather surprised that he didn’t go very far, and it makes her feel worse about her reaction. When things got rough between them, he didn’t give up and run away. _He stayed._

“I’m sorry,” She says, softly.

The Master turns around to look at her, his gaze immediately apologetic rather than angry at her. “No. I’m sorry for whatever I did to set you off.”

“It doesn’t work like that. It shouldn’t,” the Doctor replies, shaking her head. “I said we were moving on, and that means forgiving, letting things go, processing our feelings, sharing them with each other. I’m the one that said all that, but turns out I’m not that good at practicing what I preach.”

The Master can’t help but smirk at that.

“Is that funny?” The Doctor asks.

“You never have been good at practicing what you preach, Thete,” He says, fondly reproachful. 

She smiles at the use of her nickname. They had been using them more and more often lately, which she saw as a sign that they were at least trying to make things better between them. It only served to remind her of a simpler time, when they were really _just_ Koschei and Theta Sigma at the Academy, and what they were to each other then, not whatever they’ve become now. She isn’t even sure what that is sometimes, but she doesn’t care. No matter what he does or what happens between them, he’s still the person that she cares about, _loves,_ most in the entire universe, and always will. 

The Doctor moves closer to him and places her hand on his shoulder where he sits. He reaches back, taking her hand into his own and kisses it lightly.

“Come back inside,” She suggests. 

“Promise you won’t kick me out again?” The Master asks, a hint of amusement in his tone. 

The Doctor laughs lightly. “No. I can’t promise that, actually. But I can promise I’ll try not to.” 

“That’s good enough.”

Their hands stay clasped together as he stands up and she leads him back into her TARDIS.

**Author's Note:**

> I had this idea because Thirteen and Dhawan!Master’s relationship is very rocky, at least to start, and it’ll never be perfect or even close to the common ground Twelve and Missy sort of came to, but I think they can definitely try to work on things between them because they want to be together. I hope you enjoy this! Let me know in the comments.


End file.
